A/N: I write stories in a dyslexic way. I write an intro, skip to the end, write the finale, then go back to write key scenes scattered throughout the story, and finally I fill in the blanks. Sometimes, by the time I fill those blanks, the ending doesn't work. That's what happened here.

On my good-girl fanfic account "Rhov" (just Rhov, not Wild) I published "Cold, Gray Winter," a GraLu story I had been working on for months. I had meant for that story to conclude much differently, but by the time I got through writing the middle, I hated the ending. I completely rewrote the finale, which knocked the story to Rated T, thus appropriate for my main account. Still, I liked the concept, and some of the readers had wanted to see some sexiness between the two. So this is the "Take One" ending. (I still prefer the conclusion I ended up with.) This ending just jumps into the plot, so you should definitely read the full "Cold, Gray Winter," although it's my longest one-shot ever:
fanfiction net/s/8869590/1/Cold-Gray-Winter (add in a "." after "fanfiction")

Cold, Gray Winter - Take 1

a Fairy Tail fanfic

by Rhov

Gray knew Lucy was not ready. It might have been a year since she and Natsu divorced, he had been patient to the point of wanting to scream "Get over him already," yet that wasn't in his nature. He knew this was hard for her. He knew love, like any other emotion, was easily formed but not so easily dismissed. Still, when he gazed at the sultry look in her face, the hunger in her eyes, and felt how her body was trying to press itself into him, Gray lost the battle of propriety. Passion won today.

Christmas dinner was set aside. Their bodies collided like two storms, a winter blizzard and heavenly thunder. He pressed her against the kitchen counter, gliding his hands along her waist and groping at her breasts. Lucy's fingers raked through his hair and tickled the side of his neck, sending sparks of lust through his nerves.

He wanted her...now!

He would have taken her right here, spread out on the dining table, except it was already set nicely for their now-forgotten Christmas dinner. Instead, he grabbed just under her butt. Sensing what he wanted, Lucy hiked her legs up and wrapped them around Gray's torso. With her clinging to him like that, he carried her to the bedroom and collapsed hard onto the bed with the blonde still wrapped around his body, now yanking on him to lower down and take her. Clothes flew from each other's bodies in a scattered storm of fabric. His hands slid over her smooth skin, enraptured by her warmth and softness. Lucy was not fat, but those muscles that made her a reliable wizard were hardly rock hard. They were perfect, strong enough to keep up with the rest of the team, soft enough not to mar her femininity.

He wanted to gaze at her naked body, but Lucy grabbed him back down into a deep kiss. Her legs tightened around him with encouragement, pulling his body even closer. She was not ready to release him, nor was she patient enough to let him marvel at her. Such aggressiveness was shocking, but only for two seconds. Then Gray's brain gave up and let his groin do whatever it wanted. He was too inundated in sensations to care about where things were heading. His movements became exacting, the precision of the fighting wizard he was mixed with an instinctual eagerness he could hardly suppress.

Part of him wished they could slow down and savor the build up, yet a far more convincing part wanted to give in to Lucy and obey her orders...and she was making her demands obvious! Her breasts thrust out, and he played with them in a euphoria of fleshy softness. So many times while fighting, he had nearly been distracted by the bounce in those boobs. Now, he felt their softness, grasped possessively at them, kissed the ivory skin, lapped at the pink line under the breast left behind by the bra, and smiled when that made Lucy gasp. Slowly, he licked the sides of the breast, languidly making his way around and around in a spiral to the top. Then he latched onto the perk nipple with his lips and sucked hard. Her muscles tensed, and Lucy let out a light cry at the titillating sensation.

"Mmmmmh...more," she groaned sensually.

Gray pulled back and gazed down at her. Lucy's cheeks were flushed, and the pinkness was creeping down her neck, over her chest, all the way up to her ears. Her eyes were closed tightly, but Gray just chuckled at her bashfulness.

In a teasing tone, he asked, "How much more do you want, Lucy?"

She still kept her eyes closed and whispered, "Everything."

"Even this?" Gray poked at her entrance to let her know what he meant.

Her head flipped a fast nod, and the blush intensified.

"All right," he smiled gently, caressing her cheek. "Because I don't think I can hold back much longer."

Slowly, watching her face, Gray pressed against her. She was smooth, drenched, and easy to slip inside. She gasped as he filled her, and he kissed her to keep her calm. Gray knew it had been at least a year since she had sex, a year since she and Natsu...

No, he didn't want to think about that!

Still, a whole year without sex! Not that Gray had been with anyone for twice as long. In fact, he couldn't remember the last lady he picked up at some random bar. Still, he supposed it was different for women. Cana had stories that women could tighten up "without use." He knew Lucy had no sex toys—he had checked—and she felt as tight as a virgin...not that Gray even knew what a virgin felt like. Still, the ladies he had picked up were never this narrow when entering. Gray had to press rather firmly to squeeze in.

"Dear God," he groaned. Once he was fully inside, Gray needed a moment to regain his composure. "You okay?"

Again, Lucy only nodded, but the flush on her cheeks had deepened.

Gray pulled out a little, feeling soft ridges inside her. He shut his eyes to listen to the slurping sound of her juices, and it made him more desperate to take her. When it was just his tip still in her warmth, he hovered for a moment, looking down at her anticipating face, before thrusting in hard and fast. Lucy's head jolt up, her spine arched, and she cried out in ecstasy.

"Yes!" she screamed. "Hard. Like that!"

Gray normally preferred a slow rhythm of gliding in and out, but he decided to give Lucy what she wanted. His hips snapped, pounding fast and hard. She screamed and clawed at his shoulders. It made him smile in amusement.

So, Lucy liked it rough, eh?

He watched her writhing on the bed, clutching at the sheets, then at his shoulders, then grasping her pillow so hard, he thought she might rip it. Each hard, pounding thrust made her cry out loudly. Her mouth hung open as panting, groaning, and cries of pleasure were practically non-stop, driving Gray insane. She flipped her head one way, then the other, until her blonde hair began to stick to her sweaty skin. She was breathtaking!

"Lucy," he whispered in awe.

"Oh, Natsu," she moaned.

Gray pulled away fast, withdrawing completely, and stared down at her in shock. A chill far colder than a winter blizzard froze his heart. A second later, Lucy gasped in horrified realization. Her eyes opened wide and frightened. Gray's face was stunned and hurt.

"I didn't mean that," she cried out. "I...oh God, I didn't..."

Gray quickly rolled off from her and sat on the edge of the bed. He slouched over, staring at the clothes scattered across the floor as he tried to catch his breath and sort out his emotions.

Natsu! That damn flame-brain! Gray knew it had been nothing more than a stray thought, maybe a habit after being married to the jerk, but to think she was imagining him during such an intimate moment, thinking about him so potently that she would call out his name!

Lucy crawled up beside Gray and grabbed his shoulder. He felt her bare skin against his back, soft and warm and inviting. He wanted to pull away, yet he wanted to turn back around and continue indulging in her.

"I didn't mean it, Gray. I just..."

"I shouldn't have done this," he seethed with gritted teeth.

"No, please. Come back. It was a slip, that's all. Please, Gray," she purred, leaning forward, hoping to lure him back.

It was too tempting, and with her skin pressing against him, he knew he would not have the will to resist. He pulled away quickly and snatched his boxers up off the ground.

"Gray!" she shouted in surprise. She pulled the blankets up around her chest. "Gray, I'm so sorry," she breathed, struggling not to cry.

"No, I'm sorry," he said as he tugged his underwear back on. "You need more time, and I should have realized that." He took a deep breath, then looked back around at her with a forced smile. "Let's just start slow, okay?"

"But I..." Her mouth quivered as she swallowed back pointless protests. She dropped her head and admitted, "Maybe you're right."

"I'm not going to rush you, Lucy, and don't feel you need to go too fast for my sake. I'll wait, even if you need one more year."

"I guess you're right," she muttered. "I just...I don't know."

Gray heard her sigh heavily. It was such a lonesome sound. He wanted to comfort and shield her once again, but he felt that if he rejoined her in bed, he would lose all restraint.

"I just think about him sometimes, that's all," Lucy confessed. "He's gone, he's happy with Lisanna, but I still..." She could not think what to say.

"You still love him," he supplied.

"No, I don't!" she shouted, but Lucy bit her lip as she wondered if maybe a part of her did.

Gray had a small smile of understanding. "You married Natsu because you loved him. Something that deep doesn't fade like snow in the sun. It lingers like summer heat in the evening." He looked aside, debating with himself. He opened his mouth as if ready to tell her something, but sadness swept over his face. He shook his head in regret. "I love you, Lucy. That won't change, so take your time. I don't want anything half-hearted. We'll wait until you're truly ready, and don't push yourself like this ever again. When we embrace, I want to be the only person on your mind. Now, no offense, but I need to cool off and grab a smoke. Get dressed. We'll finish dinner and eat."

He walked out with no other clothes on but his boxers, went to the window that opened to the ladder, and climbed up to the roof. The blizzard pounded Magnolia, muting any attempts at Christmas cheer. Gray stood on the roof and gazed out at it. The chill on his bare skin helped to calm him down. He pulled out a cigarette, somehow lit it in the fierce wind, and puffed away as he gazed out at the driving snowflakes.

"What irony," he sighed. "Another cold, gray winter facing the blizzard up here. At least this time, there's hope."

It might take time, but Gray felt optimistic. He would replace Natsu in her life, just as winter always followed summer. They were merely trapped in "autumn" right now, an awkward between-time in their relationship. Fate would move them onward. Lucy needed time, and he would give her as much as it took, because the gift waiting at the end was better than any Christmas present.

He would wait for her...although he was more eager than a child around the winter holidays.

Gray sighed and watched his breath frost over. The night was all white, pure, pristine, cleansing his frustrations and self-doubts, leaving behind a blank slate ready to be filled with happy thoughts of Christmas and Lucy.

"Gray?" Lucy called from inside the house. "You've been out there for a while. I need help with the potatoes."

It hardly felt like five minutes, but he had to admit that he was lost in thoughts of the past year. Winter did that to him, making him nostalgic and retrospective. He stepped over the snowy roof, climbed down the ladder, and returned to the warmth of the apartment. Lucy stood in the room with her arms folded. None of the awkwardness of a moment ago showed in her face.

"Look at you! Out in the storm practically naked. Sheesh! You're an idiot, Gray. What am I going to do with you?"

He just smiled as Lucy rubbed heat into his arms. She had no need, Gray never felt cold, but the fact that she was fussing over him made Gray feel really happy. Lucy glanced up at him, blushed at his amused face, and looked away with pink spots on her cheeks.

"New Year's," she muttered. "Kiss me again on New Year's Eve. I...really liked it."

"Why wait?" he asked, and suddenly Gray grabbed her into his arms. Lucy yelped, but Gray's mouth covered hers. Just as fast, he let go and smiled down at her. "Are you only thinking about me?"

She scoffed softly. "Of course, when you're being crazy like this."

"Then prepare for a lot more craziness," he warned, and Gray grabbed her into another kiss. Just as he felt Lucy relax into it, he walked away, leaving her pouting for more. "So, you need help with potatoes, right?"

"God, you are so frustrating," she grumbled under her breath, but he still heard her.

Her irritation amused him. He would keep her wanting more, wanting him. He would work on her slowly. He had waited a year. He would wait longer. A week, a season, an entire year, it didn't matter.

Lucy's sunny smile would always warm Gray's coldest winter days.

The End

A/N: So, that's how "Cold, Gray Winter" originally ended. You can probably see why I rewrote it. You read it and scream "Noooooo! Stupid Lucy!" So if you want a happier (though less sexy) ending, please read the finalized fic here:
fanfiction net/s/8869590/1/Cold-Gray-Winter (add in a "." after "fanfiction")

If you aren't following "Rhov" too...well, technically that's my main account, but more people know this pervy account of mine, LOL!